When a GIF looks rough — hard edges, banded gradients, a halo around a transparent subject — APNG is the fix. It’s animated PNG, so it keeps full color and real transparency. This guide shows how to build one from a set of images.
TL;DR — Drop your images into the free APNG maker, set the timing, and download an animated PNG. Nothing is uploaded.
Where APNG wins
GIF’s 256-color palette and one-bit transparency are why animated stickers and logos often look cheap: gradients band, and semi-transparent edges turn into a jagged halo. APNG carries the full color range and smooth alpha, so a subject sits cleanly on any background and gradients stay smooth.
The cost is file size — a lossless APNG is larger than a GIF or WebP of the same loop. For photographic frames where size matters more than crisp transparency, WebP is usually the better call.
Building the animation
Each image becomes a frame in the order you add them. Reorder frames, set a delay per frame for the speed, and set a loop count (empty loops forever). Mismatched sizes can be resized to the smallest frame or kept at their own size. Turn on the lossy option to shrink the file when you don’t need every color.
Step by step
- Open the APNG maker and drop in your images.
- Order the frames and set the delay and loop.
- Click Make APNG, preview it, and download.
A crisp, full-color animated PNG with real transparency, built privately in your browser.